EXPERTS are calling for urgent research into the prevention and treatment of alcoholic hepatitis after a major study involving North-East patients revealed that current treatments are not effective.

A trial involving more than 1,000 UK patients found that the two main drugs used to treat alcoholic hepatitis - prednisolone and pentoxifylline - did not significantly reduce death rates.

The authors of the study, which is published in the New England Journal of Medicine, say there is a critical need for more research into prevention and treatment of the illness.

World-leading liver expert Professor Chris Day, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Newcastle University’s Faculty of Medical Sciences, was part of the pioneering study.

He said: “Liver disease is the only leading cause of preventable death that is increasing in the country, yet very little research is currently being undertaken on conditions such as alcoholic hepatitis.

“The fact that prednisolone and pentoxifylline have been found to be ineffective is not a big surprise as there was previously only scant evidence supporting their use coming from old and relatively small trials.

“There needs to be much more research as the current treatment options available do not work for those heavy drinkers unlucky enough to develop the disease.”

The study involved 1,053 patients being treated at 65 hospitals in the UK, including a significant number from the Liver Unit at the Freeman Hospital, in Newcastle.

Deaths from liver disease increased by 40 per cent in England and Wales from 2001 to 2012, partly driven by a rise in alcohol consumption. Alcoholic liver disease was responsible for 4,425 deaths in 2012.

Excessive alcohol consumption first causes fat to build up in the liver, which is potentially reversible. Alcoholic hepatitis is caused by inflammation of the liver and may cause death in up to 30 per cent of patients with a month.